Updated: Aug 16, 2022 at 1:24pm ET
UPDATE: Dodge will release a series of "Last Call" Challenger and Charger models for 2023 before discontinuing gas-powered versions of both models, which will transition over to pure electric vehicles starting in 2024.
The Dodge Charger and Challenger are two of America's most beloved muscle cars. Both are considered iconic thanks to their aggressive styling, attainable prices, and powerful Hemi V8 engines. And although the EV age is well upon us, many believe Dodge will be one of the last brands to make the complete switch to electric. The general consensus seems to be that Dodge's ICE muscle cars will live on until the late 2020s, even if they have to be sold alongside electric alternatives. However, this is not the case.
Currently, the majority of people expect Dodge's first EV to be an electric Ram 1500 that will compete with the Ford F-150 Lightning and Chevrolet Silverado EV. While an electric Ram is definitely coming (Dodge confirmed so last year) it might not be the brand's first electric vehicle. Instead, it appears the next-gen Challenger and Charger, which are due in 2024, will be completely electric.
A Dodge rep emailed Motor1 the following, in response to an article claiming the Hemi engine would return for future Charger and Challenger models:
"The story is incorrect. The Hemi in that platform [is] going away. The next generation will be BEV."
So there you have it, the next-gen Charger and Challenger (which are due in just two years) will seemingly be all-electric with no option of an engine. Dodge has been teasing a 2-door electric muscle car for a while now, but most people assumed when it eventually arrives it would be a separate model from the V6/V8 Challenger. However, it now appears it will replace the ICE Challenger. A brave move from Dodge.
We should find out more about Dodge's so far unclear electric plans in the following weeks. The brand is expected to show the aforementioned electric muscle car in concept form this August. Other models, like the Ram 1500 EV and Hornet PHEV crossover, may also be shown.
More On Dodge
There also will be gas-powered buzz vehicles for enthusiasts in the lead-up to 2024 when the first EV will hit the road, but Dodge will stop production of its current pair of high-octane muscle cars—the Challenger coupe and Charger sedan—in two years and replace them with new cars on new platforms.
Dodge Brand CEO Tim Kuniskis only just announced in July that Dodge would have its first pure EV in 2024. We kinda thought we would have to wait a while to see just how Dodge was going to tackle the future. Turns out we were too patient, because the future (at least at Dodge) is almost now.
Big News in a Nutshell:
- The first electric muscle car concept will be revealed early next year
- A plug-in hybrid car will go into production by the end of 2022
- A third significant new vehicle is in the works
- Electric vehicles will wear the Fratzog symbol
- More buzz models for gearheads are coming, along with Direct Connection parts and kits
- Current lineup of muscle cars will end production in 2024
It is all part of a two-year plan called Never Lift that has a series of product-related announcements designed to appease a split consumer base: those who will embrace electrification and those vehemently opposed to the idea and have sent Kuniskis death threats. "For 24 months we are feeding the beast," Kuniskis told us in an interview.
Dodge Cars for EVers and Anti-EVers
"I'm juggling knives because I've gotta keep two different huge factions happy because at some point those two factions will converge. The problem is no one knows when they will converge. My job is to provide confidence, over the next 24 months, that we're gonna do this."
Dodge will reveal three vehicles of significance to all buyers, wherever they fit on the spectrum, Kuniskis says. Other pending vehicles will appeal to the more niche brotherhood of muscle, appeasing them even as plans have already been made to stop making the high-performance gasoline-engine vehicles Dodge is known for today.
"These cars that you know today will go out of production by the time we get to 2024," Kuniskis tells us. He can't give the exact date of their demise, and there will be vehicles still in inventory on dealer lots, but Dodge will stop building the current lineup.
The legacy cars will be replaced by new vehicles on new platforms. Kuniskis will not say if the new models will keep their old names but he knows there is a lot of equity in names like Charger and Challenger.
First Dodge Electric Muscle Car
A concept of a pure electric Dodge muscle car will be revealed in the next four or five months, Kuniskis says. It could be as early as the first quarter of 2022, but not later than the second quarter. It will be a high-performance, drivable, testable concept. Dodge is applying for patents on the electrification. Once that is done, the automaker will use the concept to show how American muscle can be redefined with the use of electric motors.
Kuniskis won't say if the electric Dodge will be the quickest muscle car to date.
Dodge Plug-In Hybrid, But Not a Durango
There will be a new plug-in hybrid with a Dodge badge. It will be a new car. Dodge will show it soon, Kuniskis says, and will go into production by the end of 2022. It remains to be seen if it bears a new nameplate.
The fact that it will be a new car rules out previous speculation that the PHEV would be an addition to the Durango SUV family. It would have made sense because the Durango's cousin, the 2022 Jeep Grand Cherokee, adds a 4xe plug-in hybrid variant early in 2022. But the fifth-generation Jeep Grand Cherokee has moved to a new platform and the Durango has not yet made that leap, staying on a version of the old Jeep's architecture. Both the Grand Cherokee and Durango are assembled at the Jefferson Assembly Plant that is being retooled to accommodate the new-generation Jeep, but manufacturing can handle making older Durangos and new Jeeps simultaneously, we are told by both Dodge and Jeep executives.
Kuniskis won't say if or when the Durango moves to the new platform underpinning the Grand Cherokee, other than to say nothing is imminent. He also is leaving the door open to the possibility that the Durango will not be part of the newly defined Dodge lineup of the future.
Significant Third New Model for Dodge
In addition to the battery electric Dodge car and a plug-in hybrid car, Kuniskis is promising to show us a third vehicle key to Dodge's future.
"The third one is going to be a very, very, very, significant car at the end of the year," he says.
No details yet, despite our pleading.
Fratzog Symbol On Dodge EVs
Dodge has also teased us with the Fratzog name and logo (above). The Fratzog name was invented—it meant nothing when it was first used in the early '60s to describe a logo. "It still means absolutely nothing and has no relevance or significance as to why we're using it now either," Kuniskis says. But, backlit and in 3D, "it looks cool and high-tech and modern and looks like it represents electrification. ''
The Fratzog symbol will be on vehicles that are electrified, a subtle way to differentiate them, like the slashes that represent Dodge. Those in the know will recognize the red triangular symbol.
Fratzog will not be a sub-brand or even a trim level, and likely won't be part of a vehicle name.
Buzz Vehicles for Enthusiasts
Dodge will not forget its base. There will be more buzz vehicles which will be of interest to enthusiasts who want to see the continued evolution of traditional muscle cars with powerful internal combustion engines.
And the brand is bringing back Direct Connection performance parts and kits, with news that will also be huge for the brotherhood of muscle.
"Some of the buzz models, to the person who is excited about it, they will be super pumped. To the average person it won't be that big of a deal," Kuniskis says.
Dodge Power Brokers
Dodge has about 2,500 dealers in the U.S. and all can choose to become Dodge Power Brokers if they meet the requirements to sell and service enthusiast vehicles that require high-performance parts. Currently more than half the volume comes from about 300 stores, and Kuniskis thinks top volume can come from a greater number of outlets as Power Dealers who are eligible to sell and install Direct Connection parts and kits to boost power and performance while meeting emissions regulations and not voiding warranties.
Dodge will start with a pilot project of 100 dealers at launch and when Kuniskis is confident he can get the volume of parts he needs, he will expand the number of dealers. Look for Dodge to rebrand race cars and events as powered by Dodge Power Brokers.
Saving Dodge
Dodge has performed surprisingly well despite how its lineup appears on paper. Each new special edition has provided a sales boost at little cost—the aging bones upon which Challengers and Chargers ride paid for themselves long ago. Under Kuniskis, love of the brand remained kindled and the Challenger in particular is on pace to record one of its strongest sales years.
Dodge does not need a business plan to impress investors—it needs a product plan to entice buyers. Never Lift is a two-year plan to instill confidence that the brand is here for the long haul, Kuniskis says. It will show a clear path to electrification and is intended to not lose the muscle car crowd in the process. "I have two years to give them confidence it will be OK."